Chapter 190: Dung Beetle

　　Teeth that soared above ten stories, a skull the size of a town…

　　The skull was massive. Even as Wen Leyang and the others stood inside it, they could not determine what kind of monster it was. They view was limited. Even with their psychic ability, they could barely make out the outline of the skull.

　　The group followed head lama Rangjung and ran at full speed, their shadows barely keeping up. They gradually moved away from the skull, plunging into the monster’s chest through its throat.

　　The rotting stench of putrefaction became stronger the deeper they went. Wen Leyang realized in horror that the carcass of the giant monster had not completely decayed. He could still make out its hands and feet. The lips, chin, and the top of the skull had turned into dense white bones but there was still some leftover flesh along the neck area. Upon reaching the chest cavity, they were completely surrounded by decaying and rotting meat. It was like melting wax or viscous mud and had difficulty staying on the walls. It flowed slowly and clumsily. Their footsteps gave out a squish every time they took a step forward.

　　Rotting flesh covered in pus and blood would occasionally fall in big chunks from the ceiling. It broke apart and spewed everywhere upon hitting the floor, making wet splattering noises. Luckily, Wen Leyang and the others possessed psychic abilities and already knew their surroundings pretty well, reacting quickly and dodging any falling flesh.

　　If they had been ordinary people, even if they did not succumb to the smell of death or die of fright, they would have been dragged under the decaying flesh and drowned. The flesh acted like quicksand, sucking in anything on its surface.

　　The group utilized their Qi as they moved forward. Their bodies were lighter than falling leaves. They practically floated above the decaying flesh, occasionally stopping to discern their location before continuing on swiftly.

　　Qin Zhui was normally brave, but even his complexion turned green as he walked through the rotting flesh swamp. The dwarf Taoist priest’s face carried no expression, his gaze seemed to drift far away…

　　Gu Xiaojun exerted all the force in his limbs and secured himself firmly onto Wen Leyang’s back. He kept reminding his ‘driver’ to ‘drive’ carefully.

　　Wen Leyang had no qualms about carrying Gu Xiaojun but he was curious about something. He turned and asked Gu Xiaojun behind him, “Tell us, do you have any abilities?”

　　Gu Xiaojun smiled sheepishly. “Only ping pong…” His voice had barely faded when the four elites noticed something at almost the same time. The four of them stopped unison. They turned their heads and listened intently.

　　Qin Zhui gripped his Tang knife. He glanced at Wen Leyang with a sour expression, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to fight here.”

　　Unexpectedly, the dwarf Taoist priest agreed with Qin Zhui. He smiled bitterly and nodded. They had been brave enough to come down here, they were not afraid of danger. Nevertheless, nobody wanted to fight surrounded by stinky, rotting flesh.

　　‘Kacha!’ It was like metal rubbing against metal. In the quiet carrion swap, it sounded especially piercing on the ears. Gu Xiaojun conjured a QSZ-92 from behind him, almost like magic. He swiftly crossed his hands over each other. The barrel and the light beam from his flashlight were parallel as he aimed into the distance. After confirming there was nothing amiss, he looked at the other four and saw the look of disdain upon their faces, “What?”

　　Qin Zhui opened his mouth and to speak but only a squeak came out. He jumped up frantically, almost hysterical. “So many!”

　　The dwarf Taoist priest had also cried out in exasperation, forgetting he was supposed to exude the manners of a learned person. “Run!” He shuddered and dashed forward. He had only taken one step when a fiery shadow suddenly rolled in front of him. Two hands held him down by the shoulders. Head lama Rangjung had stopped him, advising in a low tone, “It’s no use. We’ve been surrounded!”

　　The dwarf Taoist priest was bothered and angry. He threw a gaze sharper than a knife, from beside the lama’s head. “Some guide you are… Stop weighing me down, my calves are sinking!”

　　The lama quickly moved his hands and pulled out the Taoist priest, whom he had accidentally pushed into the ground.

　　Wen Leyang’s expression was at ease. He turned and advised Gu Xiaojun softly, “Later, when you’re firing your pistol, please steer clear of my ears.”

　　Gu Xiaojun felt irritation at Wen Leyang’s words. “What exactly is…”

　　Pop. A soft sound cut Gu Xiaojun short. A bubble of blood the size of a well had erupted a few feet away from them. The sound was crisp. Two thick, bronze bristles swayed as they stuck out of the ground. It looked like the antennae of some extraterrestrial being…

　　A bug crawled out clumsily, it struggled to free its plump body from the grip of the carrion swamp. Upon succeeding, it jumped up and down a few times to shake the gunk off itself. It revealed to have a red shell with a black tinge. It then proceeded to circle Wen Leyang and the group, regarding them with growing curiosity.

　　Wen Leyang turned his head slightly. He pointed at the bug with his chin as he asked Gu Xiaojun softly, “Look familiar?”

　　Gu Xiaojun gripped his gun tightly, almost leaving a dent. He stretched out his neck and gulped as he responded in an equally low voice, “It does! It’s just that… it’s just too huge.”

　　It was a brown coloured bug with six legs and a thick shell. Its body was the shape of an old-fashioned military bottle, it’s forehead shaped like a flat spade. Even children who grew up in the city would have no problem recognising it, the dung tortoise. It also went by the name of Mr.Dung Shell. Officially, it was known as the dung beetle. Normally, it would only be the size of a ten cent coin. These bugs could easily be found, from the North Pole all the way to the equator. However, this dung beetle seemed to have been in the dark for too long. Its eyes had already begun to degenerate, turning into two black lumps of dead meat.

　　The bug, which was having the time of its life, extended its antennae and moved closer then further again. It was massive compared to other specimens of its species!

　　A dung beetle that was as large as a… millstone?

　　Compared to the dead giant beast that they were in, with teeth larger than small mountains, this living dung beetle larger than a cow was more impressive.

　　Wen Leyang and the rest entertained the hallucination that perhaps it wasn’t that the monster and the beetle were large, but actually they were the ones who had shrunk.

　　Nobody moved a muscle. They all stared at the big bug as it jumped about. When they realize that the big bug would probably not attack them, Gu Xiaojun let out a sigh of relief. He nodded and instructed the group, “Yeah, let’s not bother with it. No matter how big it is, it’s still just a bug. These things eat decaying flesh. That is why it is inside a carcass. We’re all living men and thus shouldn’t interest it.” As he said this, he paused briefly and laughed drily in a low voice. “A dung beetle is far better than a big fat maggot.”

　　Contrary to Gu Xiaojun’s belief, this huge dung beetle, in fact, did have a strong interest in them. It made no move to leave, pondering why these chunks of meat were standing.

　　The few practitioners did not move. They were not afraid of this one bug but through their psychic abilities, they sensed that the seemingly endless carrion swamp was filled with these things! These bugs had been hiding in the carrion, totally still, thus making them undetectable earlier. When they had sped through the monster, they had unknowingly startled the bugs. They were surrounded before they realized it.

　　Currently, countless big dung beetles were crawling to the surface from the depths silently. They stopped about twenty inches under the group’s feet, as it waiting for a signal from their ‘scout’ on the surface, on whether these people were Sichuan dishes or a pile of dung.

　　Head lama Rangjung had spent his days walking across the plateau. He knew the whole of Tibet like the back of his hand, but this was his first time seeing such a huge bug. He continued Gu Xiaojun’s sentence and urged the group in a low voice, “The beast is watching us. Try not to startle it. When it loses interest in us, it should… go away on its own?” Even the lama did not seem confident in his own plan.

　　The number of dung beetles below the surface grew steadily in numbers, but not a single one surfaced. Wen Leyang felt like he was standing at the mouth of a dung beetle volcano. Although he was not afraid, the hairs on his body still stood on end.

　　Qin Zhui’s tang knife was pointed at the dung beetle as he asked the lama incredulously, “A huge dung beetle feeding on a huge carcass, this is just a package, nothing strange about it. However, what I don’t get it, how did they get here? Isn’t this huge beast carcass sealed off by the Tibetan Buddhist mandala?”

　　There was nothing strange about a bug being in a carcass. What was strange that how these bugs had got into this carcass.

　　The huge beast was not buried under the ground but was actually in a void that had been opened up by Tibetan Buddhist magic.

　　Master Rangjung shrugged his shoulders, his expression helpless. “I don’t know either!”

　　Gu Xiaojun shook his head and said, “Don’t underestimate the dung beetle. The ancient Egyptians used to worship them. There are even drawing of dung beetles on the walls of the pyramids. They were held in high regard. According to legend, the ancient Egyptians had a practice of rearing these bugs, keeping them alive for millions of years. They believed the dung beetles protected the secrets of the world. There may be something magical about these dung beetles. If that is the case, their appearance may not be as strange as it seems.”

　　Wen Leyang turned and glanced at Gu Xiaojun. He smiled cheekily as he said, “You know quite a lot about dung beetles. Is that your speciality?”

　　Xiao Sha was skilled in folk magic, Fei Fei knew how to read expressions. Wen Leyang had always felt that the special task force under Gu Xiaojun’s command, which dealt specifically with magic practitioners, were very talented. That was why he was heavily curious as to what was Gu Xiaojun’s skills.

　　Gu Xiaojun smiled, “Knowing a lot of things isn’t a special ability anymore. You don’t have have to ask repeatedly, I do not have any special abilities.”

　　Wen Leyang shook his head in disbelief. He wanted to question Gu Xiaojun further but was struck with a thought. He shifted his gaze to head lama Rangjung. “Divine Beast Po Tu had been travelling through the earth, it should not have been connected to this space right?”

　　Wen Leyang did not care how the bugs had got in. If they were lucky, they would be able to leave in peace; if not, there would be a bloodbath. He had no control over how that turns out but if the beast was not buried underground but in a void, no matter how the giant pangolin tunnelled, it should not have been captured by the demon.

　　The head lama had not even replied when the dwarf Taoist priest coldly ended that thought. “The divine beast’s tunnelling powers are magic!” When Po Tu had vanished, the Taoist priest had been flustered and his heart was torn with madness. He had even instructed his disciples to dig a hole. He had calmed down since. He was also a wise person, or else he would not have been able to become Qilian Immortal Sect’s supreme leader. “The divine beast’s magical powers of tunnelling isn’t like digging a hole with your hands and feet but it’s like using the force from the earth and shattering the void. As long as there’s earth, one can traverse freely.”

　　Master Rangjung’s smile was tinged with surprise as if shocked that Wen Leyang was skilled but possessed no basic knowledge of magic. “Tunneling magic is actually shattering and travelling through the void within the earth. When the divine beast cast his magic, he might have affected the seal and unintentionally passed by this spot and thus got captured by the demon.”

　　The huge dung beetle had been circling the five of them for a few minutes now. Its antennae brushed against their bodies. After seemed to have confirmed that these things were not appetising, it turned around, shook its back, and crawled away slowly.

　　Gu Xiaojun chuckled lightly, his tone full of joy, “That was a false alarm. The bug had no intentions of fighting us-” He had barely finished his sentence when the huge dung beetle suddenly turned around. Its mouth seemed to move as if smiling at the group. It was sneering!

　　The boundless carrion swap under their feet started to boil, countless huge blood bubbles erupted on the surface. Thousands of huge dung beetles struggled and emerged from the ground. They shook their big fat bodies and surrounded the group in the blink of an eye!

　　Nobody had expected this. Qin Zhui howled in anger, “Sly bugs!” The Tang knife in his hand whistled. It conjured up a rolling tempest and slashed down. The dung beetles weren’t waiting for a signal. They were just using this single dung beetle as a distraction to stall their prey as they gathered… like coming to a dinner party.

　　Today is a mid-autumn day, even the bugs wanted something good to eat… (Author’s note: Please ignore this~)

　　Once he attacked, Qin Zhui immediately regained his bravery. His slash was like roaring thunder. Even if African rhinos had charged at him, they would have been pushed aside. With a loud bang, only a single beetle, which had taken the blow head on, was smashed to pieces, much to everyone’s surprise. Wen Leyang had felt the biting cold of the Hide the Force slash but the surrounding bugs seemed barely affected.

　　Qin Zhui had gathered up and used the power of the world. Whether facing a single enemy or a whole group, it should have had the same power. However, it was like there hadn’t been any magical power in that slash. He had only managed to smash that bug to pieces through brute force.

　　Qin Zhui was stunned. He forgot about his surroundings. He frowned and muttered to himself, wondering where he had gone wrong. He had obviously used his Hide the Force power…

　　Martial fanatic Qin Zhui was lost in thought but the diners did not slow down. Two huge bugs pounced on him almost at the same time. The lama and dwarf Taoist priest cast their magical powers to fight against the tide of incoming bugs. Wen Leyang howled. He leapt towards Qin Zhui, wanting to pull him away. Suddenly, two loud shots rang out beside his ears. Gu Xiaojun had fired his gun.

　　Slimy juice sprayed everywhere as the bullets hit their target. The two bugs, which were on Qin Zhui, did not even have the chance to wail before their heads were blasted to pieces. They fell to the ground with a thud.

　　Qin Zhui was shocked back to his senses. He wiped away the greenish-yellow juice on his face with his sleeve and looked at Gu Xiaojun’s gun with fright. “That’s one powerful weapon!” As he said this, he kicked back a few big bugs, flipping them over, and rushed to join his team.

　　Gu Xiaojun smiled proudly. “It’s the bullets!” The ammunition in his type 92 handgun did not have a name but it could prove lethal in combat. It could penetrate a fifty-millimeter pine board, after penetrating a helmet’s steel plate, at fifty meters away. Its penetration power was higher than that of the internationally famous Parabellum bullets. High penetration, fast travel speed, highly stable. These three properties guaranteed the upset of the internal pressure in the bugs the instant the bullet penetrated the bugs’ heads, blasting them to pieces.

　　Head lama Rangjung, the dwarf Taoist priest, and Qin Zhui roared ferociously, attacking the bugs mercilessly. Only Wen Leyang stood still. He was worried that if he moved too fast, Gu Xiaojun would hit the head lama by mistake.

　　Qin Zhui continuously slashed with his Tang knife. Just like before, he could only kill one bug per slash. Other than the bug which was directly in front of him, his Force magical powers had no effect the surrounding dung beetles. After a few moments, Qin Zhui started laughing almost happily.

　　The dwarf Taoist, even while in midst of some pressing affairs, spared the time to ask Qin Zhui loudly, “Did you figure out a way to push the enemy back?”

　　Qin Zhui replied with a laugh. “No. It’s just that I have figured out why my magic powers are ineffective against these bugs!”

　　The dwarf Taoist priest turned and glared at Wen Leyang…

　　In this created space under the mandala seal, compared to the newcomer Qin Zhui, these bugs were masters of this place. The Force of this world which Qin Zhui invoked using his magic powers was the survival element of these bugs. For Qin Zhui to use the Force in this place to fight the local bugs was like trying to drown a fish in water, or throw a bird off a building, hoping it will drop to its death.

　　However, Qin Zhui continued to laugh. In the end, he simply stopped fighting. He ran to Wen Leyang’s side and said, “I have some thinking to do!” Then he proceeded to take cover behind Wen Leyang.

　　These bugs did not possess any magical powers. However, they had great strength. A dung beetle the size of a fingernail could roll a ping pong sized dung ball and cross the world at the same time. They also had thick shells. The dung beetle had a local name, the iron armoured general. Their shells were as hard as metal plates. Even the most skilled practitioner would need to exert some energy to smash it to pieces.

　　Master Rangjung had already killed a dozen huge bugs. His body was covered head to toe in thick juice, which splattered when the bug got blasted. He gritted his teeth and wondered if he should spend some of his life force and activate an even greater magic spell. The dark mass of bugs was endless. If he did not call upon a greater magical power, it would prove difficult for them to escape. However, they have not even caught a glimpse of the shadow of the true monster. If he uses up his energy now, he figured that would spell trouble in the future.

　　Consecutive gunshots rang out. The bugs that rushed over were mercilessly shot in the head by Gu Xiaojun’s modern firearm. Wen Leyang’s body shook with every shot, his vision started to blur. When Gu Xiaojun finally stopped to change the cartridge, Wen Leyang pulled him off his back and pushed him towards Qin Zhui. His body trembled as he pulled the two other to him. He willed the Metal Poison Stream, that had always been dwelling under his feet, to flow and emanate silently towards the bugs around them! Chirping wails burst out!

　　As the Metal Poison Stream flowed, it caught on the huge dung beetles’ long legs and corroded them. They buckled and their legs were slowly burnt away by the poison until nothing was left. Their heavy clumsy bodies sunk into the Poison Metal Stream. After a few moments of painful trashing, they stopped moving!

　　Gu Xiaojun had just reloaded when he saw the bugs fall one by one in front of his eyes. He asked in a hoarse voice, “That easy for you?!”

　　Qin Zhui, who was still wracking his brains, was startled by the scene in front of him. He lifted his head and stared in disbelief as the bugs around him struggled and fell in batches.

　　Wen Leyang had divided the Metal Poison Stream into two parts. One part formed a protective circle around the group while the other flowed around rampantly. It flowed to wherever the density of the bugs was the highest. Wen Leyang smiled as he replied Gu Xiaojun, “They’re all normal bugs, just a little bigger.”

　　The Metal Poison Stream contained the poison harvested from two large bronze ants from the Land of Metal Element. Even the average practitioner would not have stood a chance against it, let alone these bugs. Although the dung beetles were huge, they were only normal living beings that had no culmination of life force energy.

　　If killing these things had been a competition, no matter who the opponent was, any Wen Bucao disciple would emerge victorious against them!

　　After having suffered heavy losses under the poison’s power, the bugs finally seemed to understand that it would be no easy feat to kill these humans. Finally, they gave up and turned tail, tunnelling back into the stinky carrion swamp. All of them retreated. Only the bodies of the fallen were left behind.

　　Qin Zhui was not satisfied and could not let go of his hatred. He asked Wen Leyang through gritted teeth, “Can you go after them? Go and poison all those bastards to death!”

　　Wen Leyang smiled and nodded. “It wouldn’t be difficult to give chase but that would be a waste of time-” The Metal Poison Stream constantly dwelled and laid dormant under Wen Leyang’s feet. Upon being activated, nothing could stand in its way. Theoretically, it would be possible for Wen Leyang to direct the poison stream down the layers of the carrion, chasing after the bugs but the problem was that this carcass was massive. Wen Leyang reckoned that he would not be able to complete this task, even if his hair turned white. In that case, Xiaoyi and Mumu, who were waiting to get married, would turn into the 2009 version of Chang Li, endlessly travelling the world in search of their groom…

　　Wen Leyang had not even finished speaking when a voice cried out in surprise

　　Gu Xiaojun was on top of Qin Zhui’s back. His left arm professionally placed on top of his right arm, the barrel moved in tandem with the flashlight’s beam, searching for a target. After a few moments of fruitless searching, he asked with a lost expression, “Where did that sound come from?”

　　The two most skilled among them, Wen Leyang and head lama Rangjung, carried grim expressions on their faces. They sandwiched the other three protectively. The sharp cry seemed to come from all around them. Even they could not determine the speaker’s location.

　　After a while, the voice spoke again. The voice was sharp and hoarse, carrying with it a jerky tone. “Can you really kill all those bastards?” The voice was trembling in unconcealed excitement.

　　Gu Xiaojun raised his hands quickly and aimed into the depths of the beast’s chest. He calls out, “What are you? Come out!”

　　The voice had not bothered to conceal its location. Even Old Gu could clearly tell where it came from.

　　The voice agreed joyfully, then went quiet. Within the huge beast carcass, silence fell all around them, like a blanket.

　　The few cultivators held their breaths and focused their minds. They threw out their psychic nets as far as they would reach. After a few minutes, Wen Leyang and the head lama, whose psychic abilities had the greatest range, looked to each other. They moved and stood next to the dwarf Taoist priest. They stood with the priest between them and each placed a hand on his shoulders. The head lama said in a low voice, “Immortal, please remain calm.”

　　The Taoist gave Qin Zhui a puzzled look. Qin Zhui looked back at the priest.

　　A few moments passed, then the dwarf Taoist priest roared in anger. His body trembled fiercely but he stayed where he was, grinding his teeth.

　　The sounds of towing reached Gu Xiaojun’s ears. The object sounded big and heavy. The person dragging the object moved in a hurry.

　　At the edge of their vision, a red monkey no taller than twenty inches was running towards the group with light footsteps. Behind him, he was dragging the giant pangolin Po Tu!

　　Gu Xiaojun’s palms grew clammy, cold sweat trickled down his forehead. He lowered his voice and asked Wen Leyang. “Should I fire? At a range of fifty meters, I can blast that thing’s head.”

　　Wen Leyang was startled by this idea and quickly shook his head. He silently mused that Gu Xiaojun and Xiaoyi must share a common language. A monster that could tow giant pangolin Po Tu and still able to run at the same time would never be beaten by a handgun.